


Erythema ab igne

by razra



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Hurt Zuko (Avatar), Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Not Really Graphic Violence, Ozai (Avatar) is an Asshole, Zuko (Avatar) Needs a Hug, dadkoda, eventually dadkoda anyway, i still dunno how to tag, no beta we die like potatoes
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-14
Updated: 2021-02-08
Packaged: 2021-03-08 02:53:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,849
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26998492
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/razra/pseuds/razra
Summary: The Water Tribe captures a Fire Nation soldier and Hakoda can’t understand why every conversation with the kid makes him furious and wanting to hunt down someone else in the Fire Nation to give them a piece of his mind.AU: Zuko is stripped of his title and serves in the Fire Nation army as a foot soldier until he gets captured by the Water Tribe.
Relationships: Hakoda & Zuko (Avatar)
Comments: 155
Kudos: 949





	1. Chapter 1

It was an unlucky night. Really, it was. The Water Tribe had been scouting the area when they stumbled upon Fire Nation soldiers. Fortunately, it was a small group and the raid should have been easy since they had the advantage of darkness, but they were having trouble containing the enemy, in particular, because of one soldier wielding dual Dao. 

His swords flashed dangerously in defensive circles and a number of Hakoda's men were getting injured, but the soldier was also slowing down due to his own injuries and fatigue. Bato managed to duck under the swinging blade and landed a brutal blow with his bone club in the soldier's left side. There was a sickening crunch and then immediately, the soldier started wheezing as he rapidly backed up. He had somehow retained hold of both his swords but was only able to hold one of them up as his other arm curved protectively around his injured side. He had also managed to stay on his feet though it was a near thing and he warily backed away from Hakoda's second.

Gold eyes glinted under what little light the new moon provided as he quickly surveyed the area. There were no other fire nation soldiers around to help. He was alone. Instead of panicking though, he seemed relieved? 

"You should surrender. You're alone and surrounded." Hakoda stepped forward. The soldier's eyes snapped to him and studied him. The Water Tribe Chief hadn't noticed earlier, but the soldier's one eye was squinted. Perhaps a head injury? 

"You're going to kill me anyway. I'd rather die standing if it's all the same to you," he gasped back, grimacing. His arm seemed to clutch harder at his side as if pressure alone could heal him, but even as he said that, everyone in the vicinity could see that the soldier wasn’t going to be on his feet for much longer. He was already splinting to his left and his sword kept drooping, nearly brushing the ground. His breath was coming out in small gasps. If he wasn’t the enemy, Hakoda might have felt bad for him. 

One of the other water tribe warriors came up on the soldier’s injured side and easily subdued him by throwing him into the ground. The swords scattered, landing nearby and there was a pained groan from the man - most likely from his injury and now how his arm was twisted up behind his back. He didn’t try to fight back seeming to understand that struggling was futile. 

Hakoda kicked one of the swords so that it was further away from enemy hands and then approached the Fire Nation soldier. 

“They were calling him ‘Captain’,” Bato offered. 

“It’s a joke,” the kid wheezed into the ground, and he really was a kid, because now that Hakoda had a better look at him, he looked way too young to be fighting. Tui, he had to be Sokka’s age! Hakoda did a lot of things he wasn’t proud of in the name of war, but he wouldn’t - couldn’t - cross the line and harm a child. 

He could feel a headache growing and he knew Bato had also gotten a good look at the kid if the sigh was any indication. 

“Tie him up and keep a watch on him until we decide what to do with him,” Hakoda ordered. “And let’s clear out before reinforcements come.” 

Tulok, who had been pinning the boy down, yanked the child up and a small gasp escaped from him and he fell limp, passing out from the pain. Well, it was probably for the best. La, what in the world were they supposed to do with this Fire Nation child? 

It didn’t take long to clean up. It seemed that it was only a Fire Nation scouting party, so there were few belongings and tents. Still, they took what they thought could be useful - food, weapons, etc - and hid the rest. In that time, Hakoda took stock of his own people. A few had been injured from the deadly blades, but no one was seriously hurt. That was fortunate. Unfortunately, other than the one Fire Nation child they had in custody, they had been unable to capture any others. 

He sighed as he thought about their latest problem again. What in Tui was he supposed to do with the child? He pinched the bridge of his nose trying to quell the growing headache as he headed toward the boat with the rest of his men. 

“What are we going to do with the prisoner?” Bato came up to walk in step with him. 

“I can’t kill a child, Bato.” 

“No one is asking you to, but what are we going to do with him? If we let him go, he might give away our position, and he’s seen our men. Who knows what else he might have garnered.” 

“What do you propose then?” Hakoda stopped abruptly and turned to his second. 

Bato shook his head. “I don’t think there are very many options here..” 

“I’m not killing a child,” Hakoda growled back, effectively ending the conversation for now. 

They had the boy sequestered in the meeting room for the time being. There weren’t many optimal places to house a prisoner on a fishing boat gutted and remade for war. His arms were tied behind his back and his feet were also tied together in a variety of sailor’s knots. He was propped up against the wall and appeared to still be unconscious. Under the lantern light, the boy seemed very pale, and Hakoda had to do a double take. What he thought was a head injury under the dim light of the new moon was actually a large burn scar that spanned the youth’s left face. There wasn’t really a question of how he got it (who else but a firebender could do something like that?) but rather why? 

It could have been as simple as a training accident, but it also could have been done purposefully and to someone who was so young… Hakoda gritted his teeth, allowing himself to be angry for just a moment at the Fire Nation. The whole time the Water Tribe had been attacking the scouting group, there had been no firebending. The men there weren’t firebenders, so their army used firebending as what? Discipline? A scare tactic against recruits? And the Fire Nation called the Water Tribe the barbarians. 

And why was someone so young even on the battlefield? There was a reason Hakoda hadn’t let Sokka come; he was too young to know of the harsh world and the depravities of men. Certainly, if the war kept up, he would one day learn, but it didn’t have to be any time soon. 

There was a sharp intake of air and then a groan as the Fire Nation boy winced and splinted towards his injury. He seemed to realize at that point that his arms and legs were tied and instead of fighting or panicking, he looked resigned. He slowly looked up and locked eyes with Hakoda. 

“What were you and the Fire Nation soldiers doing there?” he asked, instead of asking the question he really wanted to - what in the world is a kid doing in the Fire Nation army? 

The kid sighed irritably. “Look, I don’t know anything. I’m just a foot soldier, and if you think I have information, you’re sorely mistaken. Instead of wasting time interrogating me, just get on with it and kill me. We both know that’s where this is going to go.” 

At first, Hakoda was flabbergasted, then for some reason, he got really angry. “Hey, kid!” The said kid flinched back. “Just because you’re an enemy soldier doesn’t mean we’re going to kill you. We aren’t the Fire Nation,” and before he could do or say something he would regret, he quickly turned and left. It was dangerous to lose your head in front of the enemy, even if that enemy was too young to be fighting. 

It was hard to say exactly what had set him off, though it was probably a number of things. The fact that this kid couldn’t be older than 16, the fact that he was in the army, the fact that he thought he was just going to die and seemed to accept that fact without a fight… Where was the will to live? 

On the other hand, why should he care about some Fire Nation brat. He was the enemy, so there was no need for this concern. Still, he couldn’t help it; he kept thinking about what if this kid was Sokka instead? He let out an irritated sigh. It was too late to be thinking about this. Hopefully, tomorrow will bring some answers. 

It didn’t. The next day didn’t either. 

Any and all attempts to get information out of the kid was met with heated glares. Even just asking his name was met with silence. They thought that maybe his possessions might have some clues, but the kid didn’t seem to have much on his person and none of it told them what the Fire Nation was doing in that particular part of the world. 

There had been the well used swords (which were now in Hakoda’s quarters) and some metal tags. Hakoda knew the Fire Nation had been using them to identify their soldiers should they fall on the battlefield so that the family could at least be notified, but the boy carried multiple tags. One of them was blank with no markings. Another had the 41st just legible on one side, but the name and information on the other side was illegible from the scorch marks. They had also pulled a knife off the boy that was hidden in his boot - an Earth Nation blade. He had been particularly upset when that was taken. Hakoda would be too if his hidden weapon was found and confiscated. 

Today, Hakoda thought he might try a different tactic. “Do you want us to send word to your family? So they aren’t worried about you?” 

The response was not at all what the Water Tribe Chief expected. Instead of the usual silence or even maybe gratefulness for being able to let his family know what was going on, he was met with laughter. It was soft at first but quickly grew, but just as quickly, it died off as the kid groaned and tried to put pressure on his left side where Bato had injured him. “That’s funny,” he wheezed through dying chuckles. “Do you really think I would be in the army at my age if my family gave two shits about me?” He was glaring at the floor. “They sent me to die.” His eyes shuttered - apparently he had not meant to say that. 

Hakoda barely noticed; he was trying to quell his growing rage at the Fire Nation. It took him a moment of imaging himself finding the boy’s family and shaking them really hard, but he was eventually able to control it. Besides, exploding in front of the kid was unlikely to help get information from him (was that all he wanted? Information?). Hakoda was finding more and more that interrogating the kid was a test in anger control. The things that came out of his mouth that he just seemed to accept as the norm infuriated Hakoda. 

It suddenly came to him, and it was a guess but - “Is this why your tag is blank?” He pulled the metal from his pocket and held up the necklace. He had never actually seen a blank tag, but hearing what the boy had to say, it made sense to Hakoda. If he had no home to go to, why bother labeling the tags? 

The kid’s scowl grew more. “That’s.. Part of it,” he muttered, eyes fixed on the floor. 

“So why not leave the army? Go somewhere else?”

His one brow lifted in an incredulous look like it was one of the dumbest things he’d ever heard in his life. “Are you kidding me? I have a better chance at being alive on the front lines then deserting!” 

Well, that was fair. Hakoda had heard that there were some teams dedicated to hunting down traitors and deserters of the Fire Nation - to make sure their secrets weren’t leaked. 

“Why am I still alive, anyway?” The kid was now studying Hakoda. 

Again, Hakoda could feel his irritation rise. Does this kid have a death wish?! “Because I want you alive,” he snapped. The kid flinched. “Eat your food. I hear you haven’t been eating,” and again, before Hakoda could lose control of his temper, he left. Behind him, he thought he heard, “I don’t understand him.”

It goes both ways, kid.


	2. Chapter 2

It was the middle of the night if the darkness was any indication. Hakoda had been having a nice dream for a change - it had been before Kya was killed. They had been taking Sokka and Katara for their first penguin sledding experience; they had all been laughing as Sokka had fallen into a snow drift. 

There was a sharp rap on the door that shattered his dream. He woke with a groan trying to dispel the sleep, but it was hard to leave such a nice dream (the echoes of laughter kept calling him back), but the knocks were demanding and cut through the vestiges of the dream. He opened the door and blearily came face to face with Bato. “What’s going on?” 

“That prisoner is a firebender.” 

Hakoda’s brain was still trying to wake up and he thought for a moment that he was still dreaming. He repeated the words in his head and his brain came to a shuddering stop. What? 

“Nanuq said the kid was having a nightmare or something and when he woke up, the lanterns flared. One of the shattered.” Bato was thin-lipped and hesitated a moment before he continued. “Hakoda, we can’t have a  _ firebender _ on a  _ wooden _ boat. It’s suicide.” 

He was right. Hakoda, as Chief, couldn’t risk his men like this. It was different before when they assumed the kid wasn’t a firebender, but it was different now. There was a very real danger to everyone on board. Something still bothered him though - why hadn’t the child bent fire before? He could have easily escaped them or even avoided being captured in the first place had he used the deadly flames in their first encounter. Tui, if he really wanted, he could have burned them all down and sunk the ship - he’d been on for long enough. Something wasn’t adding up. 

Instead, he ignored Bato’s unasked question - even if the kid was a firebender, he still wasn’t willing to kill children. “Anyone hurt?”

“No. Not yet, anyway. Nanuq is pissed. I told him to only injure  _ if  _ the prisoner does anything suspicious.. You know his son was killed in a Fire Nation raid…” 

Hakoda felt a headache coming on and together, they made their way to where the kid was being held. Nanuq was standing outside the closed door, and at Bato’s questioning glance, he said tersely, “I can’t be near him right now.” 

Bato nodded in understanding. “Go wake Tulok. He can replace you.” The other man gave a curt nod and then swiftly took off. 

Hakoda opened the door and headed in first. He wasn’t sure what to expect - an angry kid shooting flames at them as soon as the door opened? The place on fire? A punch or kick to the face… Instead, the kid was still sitting against the far wall. It seemed he hadn’t moved except to try and roll into a ball like an armadillo-porcupine. His head was now resting against his knees hiding his eyes (and his scar); his arms were still awkwardly tied behind his back, but he didn’t seem to care or notice - he was trying to take deep breaths but it was irregular, erratic, and rattled against his knees. 

A quick glance around the room confirmed the broken lamp and there was a dark scorch along the wall. Fortunately, nothing had actually caught fire. (And the kid’s tray was still sitting there - uneaten…). Bato, he noted, stayed back and was intently watching the kid, a cautious hand on a bone club, ready to jump in if needed. 

His blue eyes went back to the kid and he still hadn’t moved. Hakoda wasn’t even sure he had heard them come in over his harsh breathing. 

“So you’re a firebender.” 

“I’m not,” the kid muttered into his knees. His breathing was slowly evening out. 

“Are you saying Nanuq suddenly learned how to firebend?” 

“Not that,” was the irritated reply. “I meant that I can’t. Anymore.” His voice was barely audible with the last word. 

Hakoda felt his brow rising in disbelief. He had never heard of bending being taken away or lost. He wasn’t even sure it was possible, though it was hard to say. There hadn’t been any benders in the South for a long time (until his daughter anyway). Besides, the kid clearly had bent; the wall would attest to that. 

“What do you mean?” Hakoda sat on the floor, trying to get a better gauge of the kid’s expressions, but he buried his face deeper into his knees, shrinking right before Hakoda’s eyes. 

“You mean my face wasn’t clue enough?” he finally asked. There was a moment when his breathing picked up and he struggled with himself, shaking slightly. Hakoda waited, and slowly, the kid got himself back under control. “I haven’t been able to. Since then. Believe me” - he gave a dry choked laugh - “the sergeants tried for weeks.” He shuddered and shrunk further into himself. 

Hakoda almost asked for the sergeants' names - for later reference. He wanted to have a nice meeting with them and his bone club as he suspected “trying to get the kid to firebend” probably was more than just pointing the kid at a tree stump and telling him to make fire. (He imagined fire swirling toward him with wide gold eyes and a startled shout.. It wasn’t a far reach to imagine Katara or Sokka in place of this Fire Nation child..) 

Oh, Hakoda realized as the pieces suddenly pieced together - large burn on the face, inability to bend, the current shaking (he probably woke to a nightmare, saw the lantern..)... The kid was scared of his element; he was  _ scared _ of fire. Was that even possible? Could a bender be afraid of their own element? And whatever these sergeants did most certainly didn’t help that fear - perhaps even intensified it. 

The kid wasn’t going to be a threat in this sense; he wasn’t going to set the boat on fire - not on purpose anyway. Somehow, that realization didn’t make Hakoda feel better. 

Hakoda got up and almost put a comforting hand on the kid’s shoulder, but thought better of it (Was he getting attached?). He turned and noticed Bato’s pursed lips and crossed arms as they left the room. Outside, Hakoda nodded at Tulok who then stepped inside to take over watch. 

Bato wasn’t going to like this but, “He’s not a threat.”

“We can’t keep sailing around with a firestarter onboard!” 

“What would you propose then?”

“Hand him to the Earth Nation. They have the capabilities to handle firebenders. He can go to prison and sit the war out.” 

Hakoda gave a noncommittal grunt. It wasn’t a bad idea, but for some reason, it didn’t sit right. (Didn’t the Earth Nation crush the hands of firebenders?) “When will we be at port again?”

“Depends on the winds. Maybe within the week.” 

“Ok, we’ll decide by then.” 

They parted only for a few hours before Bato was banging at his door again. “What is going on now?” Hakoda demanded, swinging his door open. 

“Nanuq is on deck with the prisoner. He’s going to kill him.” 

For the race up to the deck, Hakoda had thought Bato had meant that the kid had somehow taken Nanuq into custody and was holding him hostage in exchange for his freedom, but upon reaching the deck, the truth was quite the opposite. 

The large Water Tribe man was backed against the railing with a knife held up to the kid’s neck. Tulok, who was sporting a black eye, was trying to yell sense into his crewman. “Put the knife down. You don’t want to do this, Nanuq.” It seemed that Nanuq had forcibly taken the kid hostage. 

The kid had a long slash across his arm that was bleeding sluggishly, but otherwise wasn’t struggling despite no longer being restrained (when did that happen?). The shaking knife was making pinpoints of blood on his neck, but he ignored it; he was looking up at the slowly brightening sky, studying it like it would be his last. 

Nanuq was crying now, slow tears. “They killed my son! So why is he still alive?! The Fire Nation didn’t do the same for Adlartok! He was thirteen!” Tui. Hakoda should have expected this. The Fire Nation had not been kind to Adlartok - he had been barely recognizable around the burns, but a father could not mistake his own son. 

Hakoda took a step forward and stopped as a steadier stream of blood started to drip down the boy’s neck. “You don’t want to hurt a child, Nanuq.” He held up a placating hand. La, please let him see reason and keep them safe. “We aren’t the Fire Nation, and Adlartok would be sad if you stooped to their level.” The blade slowly dropped before clattering on the floor. Bato pulled the Water Tribe warrior from the child while Hakoda pulled at the child, separating the two. 

“You should have let him; it would have solved your ethical problem,” the kid said, a hand slowly going up to cover his bleeding neck. “He might’ve felt better too,” he indicated Nanuq. 

Hakoda may have pushed him a little harder than intended to Tulok and he stumbled before being caught. “We aren’t the Fire Nation,” he growled back, before addressing Tulok. “Take him to Ataninnuaq. You, get checked too.” 

“I’m fine,” but he still nodded back, carefully leading the kid to the healer’s room. Curious. Hakoda’s eyes followed them for a bit before going back to Nanuq’s crying form. He couldn’t punish the man - he was still grieving for his son. Maybe Hakoda should have sent him back to the Southern Water Tribe when it had happened, but the man had insisted he was fine - that he would fight for revenge. Now though… 

Hakoda clasped Nanuq on the shoulder. “Go rest. We can talk later.” He glanced at Bato and he took the hint, leading the other man away. He’d give him some time to calm down and then go from there. He surveyed the blood on the wooden planks and sighed before making his way to the healer’s room. 

Opening the door, he paused. Tulok was standing cross armed, watching the healer cluck over the kid and bandaging the his neck. He had been wearing a black long sleeved shirt, but due to the Ataninnuaq’s insistence, he had removed it and was watching morbidly as his arm was being stitched up, not even wincing with each passing of the needle. What bothered Hakoda more than the injury was the fact that the kid had a myriad of scars across his torso - some looked like slashes from a blade, some looked like burns. In fact, his arms looked like someone had painted the blue ripples on the ocean floor but instead of using a calming blue, they had used a furious red - it was the kind of rash one could get if exposed to heat over and over, like he had blocked (or attempted to block) a lot of flames. His back was a mess of what looked like whip marks. In fact, Bato’s blow (which was purpling and healing) when they had first captured the boy seemed to pale compared to the injuries he already had, and that wasn’t even counting the fact that Hakoda could count way too many ribs for comfort. 

Hakoda was trying to control his emotions when Tulok pulled him aside. Whispering, he told Hakoda how Nanuq had burst into the room where they had been holding the kid prisoner, and when Tulok had tried to stop him, things got violent and that’s when the knife was pulled. After the initial blow though, the kid had jumped him blocking the knife that would have injured Tulok. 

During the story, Hakoda continued to study the kid who was talking to Ataninnuaq, apparently asking about various medicines that he saw on the shelves. The older man was almost done stitching up the long gash. Maybe he reminded the kid of someone he knew, or maybe it was fatigue from everything that had just happened, or something else all together, but he was more chatty than he ever was with Hakoda. Hakoda really should think about bringing in the healer to future interrogations. 

“So boy, what is your name?” 

“Does it matter?”

“Then I’ll just call you ‘Fire Nation Brat’.”

The kid snorted softly. “It’s Zuko.” 

“Zuko, eh? Like the Fire Nation Prince?”

“The Prince is dead.” His tone, which was previously amused or interested, was now curt. He was done talking apparently. 

Ataninnuaq made a noncommittal sound in response and he finished in silence. Irritatingly, it felt like Ataninnuaq had gotten more out of the kid than Hakoda had in the past several days. 

“He’s…” Tulok hesitated. “He’s a good kid. He didn’t have to take that knife for me…” They fell into a short silence, both watching the kid - Zuko, apparently. 

“What are you going to do with him?” 

Hakoda didn’t know. The more he learned about the kid, the harder the decision was. He had a hard lot in life, and Hakoda hated the thought that he was adding to it. He was just a damn kid. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had wanted to post this like 1.5 weeks ago before I went into hell week, but alas I wasn't able to finish in time. 
> 
> I also didn't want to add so many OC crew characters but it was so awkward just saying water tribe warrior over and over and guh. I'm not very creative with characters I'm sorry 
> 
> Thank you for all the comments and kudo and bookmarks! I honestly wasn't expecting it!


	3. Chapter 3

Zuko couldn’t understand these Waters Tribesmen - they made no sense. After he was captured, he expected them to start torturing him for information; it was what the Earth Nation had done after the fall of the 41st, before they were completely annihilated by the Fire Nation that had come up from behind. It hadn’t been long that Zuko had been a prisoner, but it had been long enough to experience the creativity of cruel men.

_Whatever comes, comes. Whatever comes, comes._

He closed his eyes trying to contain his anxiety but it kept bubbling up no matter how he tried to stomp it down. What were they going to do? The earth benders had slowly crushed limbs and people in stone as torture.. So would the Water Tribe drown him? Zuko hoped not; it was not a pleasant way to go. He swallowed hard and tried not to think. Uncle had taught him how to meditate once, but he couldn’t seem to calm his mind.

_Whatever comes, comes. Only today exists. Not yesterday. Not tomorrow. Only today, so whatever comes will come._

That man was the leader. He could tell how the others quietly deferred to him; he saw it in the trust in his people's eyes and how they would turn slightly to hear him talk no matter the situation.

But people in a position of power were dangerous.

His father, the generals, the lieutenants - they were all dangerous. They all exerted their power over those below them, and they took no responsibility for the suffering and deaths they caused. It was why even after the disastrous end of the 41st, Zuko still fought in the Fire Nation army. Maybe, just maybe he could try and protect his people from the front lines and from those in power, but he didn’t have enough skill and ability to even do that. The 41st were all dead. He’d failed, and now he was a prisoner. So useless. (His father had been right after all.)

This man was no different. He spoke pretty words, sure, but they were only words. Still, he hadn't lied - not yet anyway. True to his words, Zuko had remained unharmed, though it was probably a new tactic - make them seem like allies to get information, but when they finally realized he didn't know anything and when they realized he would be of no use to them, he was sure their attitudes would change. Hopefully it would be a quick death. He didn't want it to be drawn out like he had heard the Earth Nation would do to its prisoners, and hopefully they wouldn’t drown him - it was a slow and painful way to die. Better to take a knife or sword to a vital spot.

The anxiety kept gnawing at him. They kept bringing food but he couldn’t eat. It was making him nauseous. He knew he should eat and keep his strength up for whatever the future might hold but he just couldn’t bring himself to do it. What was the point? There was no one left to protect and anyway.. He was a dead man walking, wasn’t he? It didn’t help that his ever changing guard stared at him with varying amounts of anger and disgust. (There were a few with another emotion Zuko couldn’t and didn’t want to understand.)

The days were ever repeating and he started to lose track. Someone would bring food. Guards would change. Their Chief would try to get more information out of him. The same thing over and over, except that ever since he was reminded of why he could never return home, he started dreaming about his last day as a Prince.. well the last day the Prince was alive anyway.

_“Father, please. I only-” He’d thought he would forgive him his trespasses - the hand that reached out seemed so tender before it cupped his face in hot flames._

Zuko had no doubt his father would have killed him had his uncle not stepped in, and it was better and easier to play into the rumors that the Prince was dead. Yes, it was better. Who knows what else his father would have done to clear the path for Azula. He was a fool to think his father ever cared for him. After all, he was only an obstacle to be eliminated - a stain on the Fire Nation royal line to be removed.

Even now, three years from the disastrous Agni Kai, he could feel the pain lancing up and down his face, and sometimes it still felt like it was on fire - a reminder to be wary of those in power, which was why he regretted even more letting his real name slip.

~~~~~~

It was dinner and Hakoda was face to face with the Fire Nation kid - Zuko, he recalled again. The kid was staring off to the side in between him and Bato who had insisted that he needed to be there for the interrogations henceforth. This time, instead of the floor, they were actually utilizing the table in the meeting room, but the food still sat between the two, uneaten, and from what Hakoda had heard, since the kid’s capture, he hadn’t eaten a thing. Maybe he thought the food was poisoned or something? Hakoda wasn’t sure, but the ribs he had seen in the healer’s room had bothered him. It made his stomach twist in worry - he hoped Katara and Sokka were eating enough. He hadn’t had word from the Tribe in awhile.

“The food - it’s not poisoned, you know.”

The kid’s fingers were slowly tapping on the table and then was quickening with some inner agitation; he made no movement towards the food. The kid hadn’t said anything since being seen by the healer and declaring that the Fire Nation Prince was dead… which, now that Hakoda had thought about it, he did recall hearing something about that at one of the Earth Nation ports they’d been at. It had been so long ago though… Hadn’t the Prince been young? And, there was something else… Hakoda couldn’t remember.

“What happened to the Prince?”

Zuko frowned and looked at him; his expression unreadable in part due to his scar. Should a kid have dark circles? “What do you mean?”

“You said he was dead..?” Hakoda shook his head. “It was a long while ago. I never heard the full story.”

"Officially, he died a coward.”

“Unofficially?”

The kid snorted in response. “He died a fool.” There was a moment of silence before the kid continued and his eyes seemed to unfocus just a bit. “He… He went to the Fire Lord’s - his father’s - war room. There was a general who wanted to use a division of new recruits as bait and the Prince didn’t agree. He spoke up, but…” He shrugged. “He was punished for his impudence. They say he died fighting with that division… I heard the Fire Lord wanted him out of the way so he could name the Princess as next in line.”

There was more silence as Hakoda absorbed the story. “You know,” the kid started again, softly. “He was 13.” His eyes focused sharply on Hakoda. “Which is why I really don’t understand why I’m still alive. The Fire Nation had one of their own Princes killed because he was in the way and because he spoke up, and yet you…? The Fire Nation would have killed your children. In fact, they killed your soldier's son. So just what are you waiting for?” His hands closed into fists and were shaking.

“Are you trying to die?” Tui and La, this child had to be testing him, surely?

“No; I’m just being logical.”

“We don’t hurt children, even if they are Fire Nation brats like you.” Hakoda crossed his arms, trying to quell the temptation to smack some reason into the boy. How was he not understanding this?

“You say that, but it’s not like it’s stopped anyone before,” the kid grumbled. He crossed his own arms and looked away with his scar facing them. The next part was barely a whisper. “Certainly didn’t stop my father..”

A glance at Bato confirmed that he had not imagined the words. Damn. He really wished it wasn’t true. He swallowed hard and once again tamped down on the urge to explode. He wanted to scream and demand what in Tui was wrong with his father and the whole Fire Nation. Well, it did explain why he wouldn’t take Hakoda’s words for any comfort. If his own father would lay a hand on him, how was he to believe an enemy?

He ground his teeth for a moment in irritation and contemplated asking for his father’s name; he would teach the bastard what it meant to be a father. There was a hand on his shoulder and he looked up in surprise at Bato. ‘Calm down,’ his eyes seemed to say. Hakoda hadn’t realized it, but he had been shaking in rage. He took a deep breath.

Then abruptly walked out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for disappearing. Work has been horrible and I lost my muse as a result. I’ve been trying to recover, but alas. So it’s been really hard to write this and it’s the reason this chapter is so much shorter than the others. I’m honestly not sure where I’m going with this story now. I have a thought as to how I want it to end, but I’m not sure how to get there so I guess we’ll see if I can continue this. I’m really sorry, but I’m just so tired.
> 
> As always, thank you for all the kudos and reviews! I'm sorry I haven't responded to all of them. I just haven't had the energy, but I promise I do read them. Thank you

**Author's Note:**

> I needed more Dadkoda. Fight me
> 
> Erythema ab igne - "skin condition caused by long-term exposure to heat"
> 
> Don't ask me about the title. I don't know. I picked something.


End file.
